Horses and Treats

Rate this ArticleHorses love treats, but it doesn't mean you should give them everything they want.

Taking care of horses has its own set of perks. These perks make the hobby worth the while for the breeders and owners. However, when taking care of a horse – whether a virtual horse or a real one – you have responsibilities to your equine companion that you have to fulfill. One of these is feeding the horse regularly so that it has the nutrients it needs to be healthy and perform satisfactorily.

Aside from feeding the horse regular meals, you are also expected to feed it with treats every now and then. Treats are very useful especially when the horse is still at the stage where it has to be trained for obedience. Just like dogs, horses can be taught to associate good behavior with treats. In addition, treats can also be used to temporarily provide the horse with the calories that it needs until it’s time for the next meal.

Any passionate horse owner will certainly want to keep his or her horse fed and happy. However, you’ll find that you need to practice that in moderation. You might also want to keep an eye on what your feeding your horse, because some treats are actually not good for your horse!

For instance, you cannot give chocolate as a treat. Because of their sheer size, a horse can tolerate a bite of chocolate better than dogs do. However, that doesn’t mean you can frequently buy chocolates as a treat for your horse. Convenient as it may be for you, chocolates actually have substances that can trigger a positive result in drug tests. If your horse is meant for competing, you should definitely avoid chocolates.

Some people think that because horses can eat grass, they can also eat clippings from the lawn. This is a big mistake. Lawn clippings are a mix of several other plants in addition to grass, some of which can be lethal to your horse. The clippings themselves could also make the digestive tract of the horse acidic, causing upset stomach.

Aside from chocolates, bread is also one of the most convenient and easy-to-obtain foods that can possibly make treats for your horse. That, however, is also a mistake. Remember, bread is made of dough. When the horse’s body digests the bread, it is turned into a mass that is not totally digested in the GI tract of the animal. What happens then is that the horse’s intestines become blocked, resulting to health problems.

Cauliflower and cabbages should be avoided as well. This can cause stomach discomfort for your horse, which translates to frequently passing gas.

What can you feed your horses as treats? For starters, dice up some carrots and feed a small piece to your horse every once in a while. Apples are ideal for horses as well, provided that they are also carved up into small bites. Sugar cubes can also be a great treat for your equine.

One final tip – horses should not be continually fed with treats. Giving them a bite or two every few hours is good, but feeding them too much could cause an imbalance in their calorie intake.